The enemies of the working people, the landowners and capitalists say that the workers and peasants cannot live without them. "If it were not for us," they say, "there would be nobody to maintain order, to give out work, and to compel people to work. If it were not for us everything would collapse, and the state would fall to pieces. We have been driven away, but chaos will bring us back again."

Такие речи помещиков и капиталистов не смутят,

Takie rechi pomeshchikov i kapitalistov ne smutiat,

не запугают, не обманут рабочих и крестьян.

ne zapugaiut, ne obmanut rabochikh i
krestian.

В армии необходима самая строгая дисциплина.

V armii neobkhodima samaia strogaia distsiplina.

И, однако, сознательные рабочие сумели

I, odnako,
soznatelnye rabochie sumeli

объединить
крестьян, сумели взять себе на службу

ob'edinit krestian, sumeli vziat sebe na sluzhbu

старых царских офицеров, сумели создать

starykh tsarskikh ofitserov, sumeli
sozdat

победоносную
армию.

pobedonosnuiu armiiu.

But this sort of talk by the landowners and capitalists will not confuse, intimidate, or deceive the workers and peasants. An army needs the strictest discipline; nevertheless the class-conscious workers succeeded in uniting the peasants, succeeded in taking the old tsarist officers into their service, succeeded in building a victorious army.

Красная Армия создала невиданно твердую

Krasnaia Armiia sozdala nevidanno tverduiu

дисциплину не из-под палки, а на основе

distsiplinu ne iz-pod palki, a na osnove

сознательности, преданности, самоотвержения

soznatelnosti, predannosti, samootverzheniia

самих рабочих и крестьян.

samikh rabochikh i krestian.

The Red Army established unprecedentedly firm discipline-not by means of the lash, but based on the intelligence, loyalty and devotion of the workers and peasants themselves.

И вот - чтобы навсегда спасти трудящихся от гнета

I vot - chtoby navsegda spasti trudiashchikhsia ot gneta

помещиков и капиталистов, от восстановления их

pomeshchikov i kapitalistov, ot vosstanovleniia ikh

власти, - надо создать великую красную армию

vlasti, - nado sozdat velikuiu krasnuiu armiiu

труда. Она будет непобедима, если в ней будет

truda. Ona budet nepobedima, esli v nej budet

трудовая дисциплина.

trudovaia distsiplina.

And so, to save the working people from the yoke of the landowners and capitalists for ever, to save them from the restoration of their power, it is necessary to build up a great Red Army of Labour. That army will be invincible if it is cemented by labour discipline.

Рабочие и крестьяне должны доказать, и они

Rabochie i krestiane dolzhny dokazat, i oni

докажут, что правильное распределение труда, что

dokazhut, chto pravilnoe raspredelenie truda, chto

беззаветную дисциплину и преданность в труде на

bezzavetnuiu distsiplinu i predannost v trude na

общую пользу - они сумеют наладить сами без

obshchuiu polzu - oni sumeiut naladit sami bez

помещиков и против помещиков, без капиталистов

pomeshchikov i protiv pomeshchikov, bez kapitalistov

и против капиталистов.

i protiv kapitalistov.

The workers and peasants must and will prove that they can properly distribute labour, establish devoted discipline and ensure loyalty in working for the common good, and can do it themselves, without the landowners and in spite of them, without the capitalists and in spite of them.

Трудовая дисциплина, бешеная энергия в труде,

Trudovaia distsiplina, beshenaia ehnergiia v trude,

готовность на самопожертвование, тесный союз

gotovnost na samopozhertvovanie, tesnyj soiuz

крестьян с рабочими - вот что спасет трудящихся

krestian s rabochimi - vot chto spaset trudiashchikhsia

навсегда от гнета помещиков и капиталистов.

navsegda ot gneta pomeshchikov i kapitalistov.

Labour discipline, enthusiasm for work, readiness for self-sacrifice, close alliance between the peasants and the
workers - this is what will save the working people from the oppression of the landowners and capitalists for ever.

Recorded: End of March 1919First Published: Published according to the gramophone records. Organization of these speeches was accomplished by
Tsentropechat, the central agency of the All-Russia Central Executive Committee for the Supply and Distribution of Periodicals.
Between 1919 and 1921, 13 of Lenin's speeches were recorded.Source: Lenin's Collected Works, 4th English Edition, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1972,
Volume 29, pages 250-251Translated: George HannaTranscription/Markup: David Walters & Robert Cymbala; Liviu Iacob,
2006